By CRAIG RASMUSSEN
professional bodybuilder (whose job is usually his training) would have? I don’t think so. In our experience at Results Fitness (as we are currently working with well over 300 clients multiple times per week on individualized programs), full body weight training routines done three times a week—based on a split of basic human movements—will work far better for most dudes in terms of fat loss training. This allows you to train with a higher frequency (you will actually hit muscle groups more often than typical body part split routines) and get better results. At Results Fitness, instead of classifying our exercises by muscle group or body part, we classify them simply based on what they are: basic movements. The classification that we use is as follows:
• Squat
• Bend
• Push
• Pull
• Single Leg Stance
• Lunge
• Core
We will then allocate these movements to training days, as you will see in the following sample program.
2. DUDES ThINK MORE IS BETTER.
More than likely, because of the heavy mainstream bodybuilding influence on general training as mentioned above, most dudes usually think that to get results, they must train on that good ol’ five to six times per week body part split routine with extremely high volume.
They also often think that they must use multiple exercises for each body part with tons of sets. You must realize that you make gains while you are recovering from training, not during the actual training itself. There is usually no need for exercises that are redundant. Think about it, what the heck is the leg extension going to do for you that the squat doesn’t? The key is to focus on quality and not so much on quantity. As fitness expert Paul Chek has stated, “exercise is like a drug.” With the correct dose and the correct drug, you will get the desired response, and it all works. If you overdose or take the wrong drug, you can do more harm than good and not get the desired response. One of the reasons why a three times per week full body routine works so well is that you get a high frequency of training without overdoing it in terms of volume.
3. DUDES DO TOO MANy SINGlE JOINT EXERCISES.
Is it a federal crime to do some biceps curls and triceps pushdowns? Nope, but when the volume/number of these types of exercises dominate your program, you will greatly diminish the effectiveness of your workouts, particularly when it comes to fat loss. If you focus your training on heavy, multi-joint (compound) exercises—
such as squats, deadlifts, various presses, push ups, rows, chins/pull-ups, etc.—you will train much greater amounts of muscle overall, and this will lead to more calories burned during and after your workouts. As a general rule, the more muscle involved in an exercise the better.
But what if a dude’s goal is to also get bigger guns? Realize that spending the majority of your time and effort on getting stronger on chin-ups/pull-ups, various rows, and various types of presses will get your arms bigger faster than anything else. If you are unable to only do a single unassisted chin-up, what do you think will do more for your biceps size: those 25- to 30-pound curls or focusing all of your time and energy on working on that chin-up and getting to the point where you are doing multiple reps with an extra 25- to 50-pounds hooked up around your waist?
4. DUDES NEGlECT lOWER BODy TRAINING.
Squats aren’t simply a leg exercise, and deadlifts aren’t simply a back exercise. They are full body exercises that involve just about every muscle in the entire body. If you have a 315-pound bar on your shoulders or upper back, and you are getting ready to bang out a set of squats for eight reps, realize that your legs are not the only things involved in the exercise. Your shoulders, upper back, core, etc., are all very heavily involved. They need to be big enough and strong enough to support and move that load.
A lot of dudes think, “I get enough ‘leg’ work from running and playing hoops, so I don’t need to do squats, deadlifts, lunges, step ups, etc.” Sorry, but that’s just not the same thing! Understand that approximately 70%
of your muscle mass is in your back, hips, and legs. If you omit these exercises, you are severely limiting your results. Dare to be different and dare to get better results. At our gym, you will see everyone doing deadlifts, squats, lunges, and various single leg exercises, thereby training “legs.” It is part of our culture here and one of the reasons that we get the results that we do.
5. DUDES REST WAy TOO lONG BETWEEN SETS.
You know the scene at the local gym: guys taking five to ten minutes between sets of the same exercise, shooting the breeze with their buddies while discussing any number of topics and paying no attention to the time. This is not very effective if your goal is fat loss! Research and practical experience has shown us that shorter rest periods lead to maximal metabolic disturbance, possibly due to the hormonal influence that is set off by these shorter rest periods. It also allows us to increase overall caloric burn and total work performed in the time allotted for the training session. The key is being able to combine shorter rests without compromising the use of heavier loads in our compound exercises. How do we do this? Quite simply, we pair non-competing exercises with short rests (30-60 seconds) between them. As an example, we might use the following pairing in a program:
1A: Push Ups 2-3 sets 12 reps 60 sec. rest
1B: Reverse Lunges 2-3 sets 12 reps each 60 sec. rest
This allows us to increase the actual amount of work density done in a specified time period—as opposed to doing each exercise one at a time with longer rests—which again leads to better fat loss results.
6. DUDES ThINK, “ThE BENCh PRESS IS MORE ThAN JUST AN EXERCISE, IT IS A WAy OF lIFE!”
I don’t think that there is any doubt that the bench press is the most overused exercise of all time. But, let me state this up front, there is nothing wrong with the bench press! I love the bench press (as most dudes do).
The problem is when the bench press becomes your entire workout each time, rather than simply a part of your training program. In other words, most dudes simply bench press way too often and with way too much volume. This creates massive imbalances about the shoulder girdle. You need to strive for some sort of balance in the amount of pushing and pulling movements that you perform. Since most guys have been doing way more pushing for such a long time, it is a wise plan to purposely imbalance your training in the other direction in performing more pulls than pushes. You need to include a lot of inverted rows, face pulls, dumbbell rows, and cable rows. Remember the fact that 70% of muscle mass is in the back and legs? This will do your shoulders a lot of good and help out with the fat loss process all at the same time. By the way, in looking at the push pattern from a fat loss standpoint, the good old-fashioned push up is probably a better choice than the bench press actually, as it involves a greater amount of muscle mass and integrates the core to a greater extent at the same time.
With all of that said, let’s take a look at what a sample eight- to twelve-week training program would look like.
ThE DUDE WEIGhT TRAINING PlAN FOR FAT lOSS PhASE 1: 4-6 WEEKS
Day A
Range of Motion, Activation, & Movement Preparation. (Dynamic Warm Up of 8-10 drills) 1A: Horizontal Cable Woodchops 2 sets 10 reps each way 0s Rest
1B: Ab Wheel Roll Outs 2 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
2A: Front Squat 2-3 sets 6 reps 60s Rest
2B: Single Leg Ankle Mobility 2-3 sets 8 reps each side 0s Rest OR
2A: Hex Bar Deadlift 2-3 sets 6 reps 60s Rest
2B: Hip Flexor Stretch 2-3 sets 30s each side 0s Rest (Alternate using the front squat pairing and the deadlift pairing each workout day)
3A: TRX Inverted Rows 2-3 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
3B: Reverse Lunges 2-3 sets 10 reps each 60s Rest
4A: Push Ups 2-3 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
4B: Neutral Grip Face Pulls 2-3 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
Day B
Range of Motion, Activation, & Movement Preparation. (Dynamic Warm Up of 8-10 drills)
1A: Side Plank 2 sets 20-40 sec. hold ea. 0s Rest
1B: Prone Jackknife 2 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
2A: Bench Press 2-3 sets 6 reps 60s Rest
2B: Figure Four Hip Stretch 2-3 sets 20s each side 0s Rest
OR
2A: Chin-Ups 2-3 sets 4-6 reps 60s Rest
2B: Leg Lowering Drill 2-3 sets 6 reps each side 0s Rest (Alternate using the bench press pairing and the chin-up pairing each workout day.) 3A: 3-Point DB Rows 2-3 sets 10 reps each side 60s Rest 3B: Cross Over Step Ups 2-3 sets 10 reps each side 60s Rest 4A: DB Overhead Presses 2-3 sets 10 reps 60s Rest 4B: Swiss Ball Leg Curls 2-3 sets 10 reps 60s Rest
PhASE 2: 4-6 WEEKS
Day A
Range of Motion, Activation, & Movement Preparation. (Dynamic Warm Up of 8-10 drills) 1A: High to Low Cable Woodchops 2 sets 8 reps each way 0s Rest 1B: TRX Fall Outs 2 sets 8-10 reps 60s Rest
2A: Back Squat 2-3 sets 5 reps 60s Rest
2B: ½ Kneeling Ankle Mobility 2-3 sets 8 reps each 0s Rest OR
2A: Deadlift 2-3 sets 5 reps 60s Rest
2B: Quadruped T-Spine Rot 2-3 sets 8 reps each side 0s Rest (Alternate using the back squat pairing and the hex bar deadlift pairing each workout day) 3A: Single Arm Cable Rows 2-3 sets 12 reps each side 60s Rest 3B: RFE (Bulgarian) Split Squats 2-3 sets 12 reps each side 60s Rest
4A: T-Push Ups 2-3 sets 6 reps each way 60s Rest
4B: Neutral Grip Face Pulls 2-3 sets 15 reps 60s Rest
Day B
Range of Motion, Activation, & Movement Preparation. (Dynamic Warm Up of 8-10 drills) 1A: Kettlebell Windmills 2 sets 5-8 reps each side 0s Rest
1B: Prone Pike 2 sets 8 reps 60s Rest
2A: Close Grip Bench Press 2-3 sets 5 reps 60s Rest 2B: Prone Piriformis Stretch 2-3 sets 20s each side 0s Rest
OR
2A: Neutral Grip Pull-Ups 2-3 sets 3-5 reps 60s Rest 2B: Leg Lowering Drill 2-3 sets 6 reps each side 0s Rest
(Alternate using the close grip bench press pairing and the neutral grip pull-up pairing each workout day.) 3A: TRX Inverted Rows 2-3 sets 12 reps 60s Rest
3B: Single Arm Single Leg RDL 2-3 sets 12 reps each side 60s Rest 4A: Barbell Overhead Press 2-3 sets 12 reps 60s Rest 4B: Swiss Ball Leg Curls 2-3 sets 12 reps 60s Rest
NOTES:
Use this program three days per week on non-consecutive days, e.g. Mon/Wed/Fri or Tue/Thus/Sat. You can choose to do it only two days per week, but you will need to extend it over six weeks instead of four weeks if you do this.
Alternate the A and the B program each training day. For example, weeks 1 through 3 will look as follows:
Week 1: Monday - Workout A / Wednesday – Workout B/ Friday - Workout A Week 2: Monday - Workout B / Wednesday – Workout A/ Friday - Workout B Week 3: Monday - Workout A / Wednesday – Workout B/ Friday - Workout A
ABOUT CRAIG
Craig Rasmussen is a program design specialist and performance coach at Results Fitness in Newhall, California. Results Fitness has been named one of America’s top ten gyms by Men’s Health magazine multiple times.
Craig has been featured in several national publications including Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Muscle and Fitness, and Runner’s World. He is a competitive powerlifter and Craig also coaches our powerlifting team at Result’s Fitness.
Craig Rasmussen is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. For more information, please visit: www.resultsfitnessuniversity.com.
When this routine was originally created, the one key objective was to make a strong deadlifter STRONG(ER).
When you consider the difficulty in improving an elite lifter’s deadlift, while also improving in the squat and bench, it seems like a suicide task. Regardless of common sense, we had to try—and try we did.
This is the original routine that I drew up for Shawn Frankl after he had stalled multiple times in the mid-700s. Our sole goal was to not slow down the other lifts while simultaneously hitting the deadlift hard—at least hard enough to get it stronger.
The first thing we knew that was lacking was a specific and formal cycle. However, we also needed to identify indicators. We needed to find which lifts would harness his weaknesses while also improving his technique.
Technique is easy; there’s no better way to get something better than to practice. Therefore, we knew that the volume was going to get higher than it typically has been for him. Indicators were a different item for us, as we really didn’t know where he was stalling. So we started from scratch, which makes this routine ideal for someone looking to get his deadlift out of a rut.
The funny thing is that I had a million and one requests for this routine after Shawn hit his 780-pound deadlift, which turned out to be about a 40-pound PR for him. This was also the third consecutive time that he hit a PR using this routine (with minor tweaks and changes).
So, without further ado, here it is in its original form:
55% 3x6 Conventional
60% 3x5 Conventional
65% 6x4 Sumo
70% 3x4 2” platform Sumo
75% 3x3 2” platform Sumo
77% 3x3 2” platform Sumo
82% 3x3 2” platform Sumo
70% 4x2 2” platform Sumo
70% 2x4 Sumo
77% 2x3 Sumo
90% 3x2 Rev. Bands
79% 3x3 Sumo
Hang On!
By Al CASlOW
86% 3x2 Sumo
95% 3x2 Rev. Bands
88% 2x2 Sumo
93% 3x1 Sumo
100% 3x1 Rev. Bands
70% 4x2 Sumo - Unload
95% 2x1 Sumo
98% 2x1 Sumo
90% 1 Sumo
93% 2x1 Sumo
70% 3x2 Meet week
Key notes about the cycle:
• Be very aggressive in your pulling. This doesn’t mean that you need to yank the crap out of the bar; it means to be aggressive but technical in all reps.
• Do not be passive with any set and any rep. That won’t help your form; form needs to be im-proved while firing in all cylinders—this is the very reason it’s easy to look amazing with lighter weights.
• The last key is to never use your biggest max. You’re not 100% every week, so using your max could be more damaging than helpful. Be conservative. We used 95% with Shawn—never more but never less. The guy was a machine and could handle about anything thrown his way.
As for the specifics:
Notice we used deficit pulls at 2”. When using a platform, it needs to be 2” minimum, 3” max. Or you can use all 35s instead. The purpose here is not to improve starting strength, but to help force you into proper position. American powerlifters have the worst flexibility and hardly get into proper sumo position. Extending the amount of stretch needed to get it right helps increase the range of motion in the hips. You won’t get the necessary effect from one week, which is why we dedicated three weeks to this. There is always room for general improvements like technique, form, and ROM.
As for the reverse band cycle after the platform work—this was solely to get more work from the floor but to focus on working the mid/upper back more so than the hips. The reverse band allowed for full range (to continue hammering technique), but it also relieved hip activation enough so as not to bang them too much.
It also increased the mid/upper back recruitment to lock out the heavier weight.
I love this routine so much that I kept it and have used it on many other lifters who were looking to improve their deadlift. In fact, it was the template Mick Manley used (with some slight modification) to go from a mid-600s pull to a low-700s pull. I also used this exact routine to get my first 700. Enjoy—it’s not as easy as it looks!